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My mother’s mouth curved with tenderness and a hint of pride. “You surprise me, Augustus. Not only are you handling this calmly, but you’re thinking like a true king.”
I slammed my fist on the table, making her jump with the suddenness of it. My veins bulged in my neck, and my mouth took on an unpleasant twist. “Do not mistake this conversation. I’m thankful that you got Christine to safety, but I am not pleased with how you did it. You should’ve told me—”
“And put Christine even more at risk?” she cut me off. “You are reckless. You wouldn’t have approached it with a clear head, and Christine would’ve been collateral. I saved you both when I sent her away, and I will not apologize for that. I will never apologize for keeping you safe. I won’t apologize for still keeping you safe, either. I thought you’d be thanking me. I knew you loved that girl from the moment you met her. And now, with my help, you’re marrying her.”
I glared at her, cold fury turning my veins to ice. Her expressive face changed and became almost somber. And although she had a sense of regret about her, her eyes glowed with a wild inner fire. My mother was fiercely protective.
“I’m a man now,” I replied.
“No,” she replied. “You are a king.”
“And I will do whatever is necessary to keep Christine safe. I want the blackmail to stop. The engagement is settled, but I don’t want you holding that night over her head anymore.”
She gave me a sly smile that made my chest feel heavy. “Without the blackmail, she has no reason to stay here. Are you sure you want me to stop before the marriage is solidified?”
I didn’t know how to answer her. I didn’t want Christine to leave, but also didn’t want her to feel forced to marry me. All of this was a clusterfuck of epic proportions.
I decided to ignore her question until I had an answer for her. “Tell me what you know about Lord Geralt’s family. His brother will be here any moment, and I want to be prepared. Do they suspect anything?”
Her lips thinned with irritation, as if angry I would doubt her expertise on the situation. “Of course not. No one ever suspected anything. Geralt was a drunk. Hardly a picture of health. I had to do a lot of work behind the scenes, but from what I gather, his family was all too happy to claim his inheritance and title. You know how these things go. The members of the court care more about their position and status than they do about grief. They don’t question things that benefit them.”
“But now someone is questioning my right to marry Christine,” I gritted. “That is a problem.”
My mother casually flicked her wrist and huffed. “You’re king. You can marry anyone you like. They can protest all they want, but at the end of the day, you rule. They’re probably just trying to grasp at whatever power they have.”
I assessed her for a moment, trying to decide if she was being cocky or truthful. A knock on my office door made us both turn to look. “Come in.”
Adonis entered the threshold and bowed respectfully. “Lord Geralt’s brother, Lord Nathan Croft, is here to see you, Your Majesty.”
I nodded. “Let him in.”
My mother stood up and pressed her back against the wall, clasping her hands in front of her like the obedient former queen she was. For a moment, I regretted not furnishing my office before agreeing to this meeting. I wanted to put on a show of strength. I wanted to rip his eyeballs from his very skull.
I could hear footsteps in the hallway leading toward my office, so my mother hissed, “Stay calm and confident, August.”
The man who walked through the door was younger than I expected. He had dark brown hair, beady little eyes, and a sheen of sweat on his forehead. He wore the typical fashions of our kingdom, a detailed pantsuit in a deep shade of forest green with gold needlework and a bow tie that was disproportionate to his thick neck. The moment he walked in the room, he slowly looked around and appraised the space before offering a stunted bow, an obvious sign of disrespect. “I see you’re still getting settled, Your Majesty,” he said before straightening his spine and looking me right in the eye.
I leaned back in my chair, feigning boredom as I assessed him with a critical eye. He didn’t look muscular, and he was on the shorter side. I could take him in a fight if I needed to.
“As you’re well aware, I have been quite busy taking over and making wedding plans. I’m engaged, although your house is the only member of this court that hasn’t offered their formal congratulations. I’ve been informed that you are under some delusion that my future wife somehow belongs to you. If you are here to protest my upcoming marriage, you will be very disappointed.”
It both sickened me and surprised me to hear how I spoke. I sounded as pretentious and royal as my father, years of forcing down my birthright abandoned all for the sake of defending Christine. I never liked the pompous formality of it all—and I definitely hated being an intimidating motherfucker. But I supposed it came in handy today.
Lord Nathan gave me a narrowed, glinting glance before addressing my mother, another insult. I was the king. I was running the conversation. “My lady, I have the marriage contract your late husband drafted. It is legal and binding, according to my lawyers. I had always intended on claiming Christine, I was just waiting until she returned from her studies abroad.”
He pulled out an envelope from inside his suit jacket and moved as if to hand it to her, but she kept her hands firmly clasped in front of her, a wordless refusal to acknowledge the contract in any way while also deferring to me. My mother frustrated me, but she stood at my side when it counted. Even when our family suffered through the friction of being forced together by our bloodlines, we understood that our power was infinitely stronger when we were together. Loyalty was forged under the harshest of climates.
When she didn’t take it, Lord Nathan then turned back to me. He dropped the contract on my desk unceremoniously, once again showing a lack of respect that would not work in his favor. At first, I wanted to just humiliate the man and assert my power, but now, more so than ever, I wanted to kill him. It was crazy how quickly I assumed the role of king.
“Regardless of the contract and what your lawyers think, I am the king now. Any agreements of such a nature made under my father’s rule are void. Besides, Christine is well above your station. It would be a rather unsuited match. I’m sure you can find another lady of the court more available. Or has your family’s reputation become so tarnished that you have to rely on kings to arrange marriages for you?”
He bristled and ran his hand through his hair, and I cataloged the nervous tic for memory later. I wanted nothing more than to pour myself a drink and watch this man bleed out, but he was persistent and I had my hands tied.
Lord Nathan gave me a look full of scrutiny. “It’s such a shame my brother died before he had the chance to solidify his marriage to Christine. So odd, the circumstances regarding his passing. I always found the entire ordeal incredibly suspicious. If he hadn’t died, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Christine would be married and possibly have a few children by now. How serendipitous for you that he’s out of the way.”
The image of Christine having children with another man made me sick, but I schooled my features to continue feigning boredom. “Serendipitous that an alcoholic died? I find nothing odd about that drunkard’s death.”
Lord Nathan took a step closer to my desk, and I sat up taller. “The papers have narrated quite the love story between you and Christine. Everywhere, they’re discussing how you’ve been in love with her your whole life. It seems to me you would’ve been angry at the arranged marriage your father coordinated. And sometimes, I wonder what lengths a man would go to for what he wants.”
